The first annual Christmas by the Sea event will continue the summer tradition of free, family-centered Boardwalk events throughout the holiday season.

By Amanda HutchesonStarNews Correspondent

Carolina Beach's recently revamped Boardwalk has big plans for the holiday season.The first annual Christmas by the Sea event will continue the summer tradition of free, family-centered Boardwalk events throughout the holiday season.The events kick off Friday night with the Lighting of the Boardwalk at 8 p.m., following the Lighting of the Lake. The Boardwalk businesses have decorated for the season.Fridays and Saturdays through Dec. 19, the boardwalk will feature family-friendly entertainment, including a live nativity scene, caroling, puppet shows, performances by the Cape Fear Roller Girls and the Pleasure Island Drama Club and choral and band performances by local schools. There will be storytelling and hot chocolate at a fire pit, supervised by the Carolina Beach Fire Department, and arts and crafts and ornament making for children. Santa will also make special appearances Saturdays. The welcome center has been transformed into Santa's workshop.“We're excited about the event; we look forward to seeing all the kids come down there, seeing all the wide eyes,” said Dan Wilcox, town councilman and member of the Boardwalk Makeover Committee.Ten local businesses, some from Carolina Beach and some from Wilmington, helped decorate coves along the back, ocean side of the Boardwalk. The decorations will remain up until the town's New Year's Eve celebration.“The whole boardwalk will be lit up, there will be things going on,” he said.The event also aims to draw area residents outside of Carolina Beach and tourists to the town in what was once a slow season, which Wilcox described as win-win.“It's two-fold; we want to keep some energy down there in the off months for things like this, for Christmas by the Sea,” he said. “We want to give them something to do and at the same time encourage the business owners, give them a reason to be open more than the off season.”The committee hopes to increase the size of the event in subsequent years, adding Halloween events and eventually bridging the winter off season at the boardwalk. But Wilcox said event organizers are excited for the first of many years of holiday fun.“We recognize the boardwalk as being just a tremendously important center of town,” he said. “This is an opportunity to provide some more entertainment.”